Pentagon chief doubts China’s invasion of Taiwan is imminent

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin doubts that China’s invasion of Taiwan is imminent, as he himself said at a press conference following a meeting between the US and Japanese foreign policy and defense chiefs.

"I won’t second-guess Mr Xi but I will tell you that what we’re seeing recently is some very provocative behavior on the part of China’s forces and their attempt to reestablish a new normal," Austin pointed out in response to a question. "We’ve seen increased activity, aerial activity in the straits, we’ve seen increased surface vessel activity around Taiwan and again, we believe that they endeavor to establish a new normal. But whether or not that means that an invasion is imminent, you know, I seriously doubt that," he noted.

Austin also called on China to keep lines of communication open. "That dialogue is enormously important," he stressed.